What can ipad air 2. Tablets Apple iPad

Large tablets with the rise in popularity and falling prices of their smaller brothers had to give them market share. Even Apple gave up on the fourth generation iPad and was forced to launch a smaller tablet on the market - the iPad mini. At the same time, Apple was well aware that if the full-size iPad remains at the same level of development, then public interest in it will be less and less: a simple increase in power and the addition of any software “chips” will not do here. The engineers of the "apple" company had a really difficult task: they needed to make such a full-size tablet that would be as convenient to use as its younger brother. And Apple made it.

Last year, the iPad Air saw the light - a tablet that is ahead of its predecessor in all respects. What was worth the fact that he lost almost two hundred grams, and his thickness decreased by two millimeters! From the camp of tablets on Android, in fact, only the Sony Xperia Tablet Z could compete with it - also, it should be noted, a very successful tablet. There were no other analogues at that time.

The first Air really turned out to be extremely successful, no matter how you look at it. And on the way to a bright future, he had only one problem. Her name is iPad mini with Retina Display (now iPad mini 2. The fact is that its technical filling completely copied the hardware of its older brother, and it was much more convenient to use mini because of all the same sizes. And let it be in Apple they say that they are not afraid of internal competition, in the new generation of tablets, the Yabloko clearly decided to eliminate it - mini was left almost unchanged, concentrating all efforts on Air.

Apple iPad Air vs. iPad 4 (bottom)

Air 2 got all the latest, all the best, and mini 3, shown with it on the same day, is content with last year's developments. Of course, this is not very good - Apple deprives users of the opportunity to choose, imposing either definitely the best, or definitely last year. The situation is aggravated by the fact that the difference in price between Air 2 and mini 3 is not very big: a modern Air costs from 24,490 rubles, and a mini costs from 19,490 rubles. And this is on condition that the "iPads" of 2014 turned out to be fundamentally different ...

⇡ Appearance and ergonomics

The exterior of the iPad Air 2 has remained virtually unchanged since the first Air. The shape of the device remained the same, the ratio of the screen and front panel areas has not changed. Try to determine from the photo where the new Air is on it.

Apple iPad Air - new and previous

Of course, attentive readers will say without a shadow of a doubt that the Air 2 is white, and they will be right. Not because it is in the photo above, but because the central Home key with the Touch ID fingerprint sensor is clearly visible on it. In the exterior of the device, this is perhaps the most noticeable, but far from the only change.

Apple iPad Air 2 - Home button with Touch ID fingerprint reader

The new Air is slightly lighter than its predecessor. The gadget weighs only 437 grams in the version without a built-in modem and 444 grams with it. For a ten-inch gadget with a metal case, this is a very small figure. Even 480 grams of the previous model was considered a breakthrough, but Apple engineers did not stop there.

Apple iPad Air 2 is even thinner

Perhaps the most significant change in the appearance of the gadget can be considered a decrease in the thickness of the case from 7.5 millimeters to a record 6.1 mm! On the this moment not a single ten-inch tablet can boast of such an indicator (recall, the previous record holder is the same Xperia Z2 Tablet with a thickness of 6.4 mm). It is noteworthy that the length and width of the body has not changed one iota. Probably, it was precisely because of the reduced thickness that the engineers had to abandon the physical switch on silent mode next to the volume keys. By the way, the same unsightly glossy dimple settled between these buttons as in the iPhone 6. Emphasizes the reduced thickness and single (rather than double, as before) perforation opposite the external speaker on the bottom.

The bottom end of the Apple iPad Air and iPad Air 2 (top)

Apple iPad Air 2 - connectors and interfaces

Like all modern mobile gadgets from Apple, iPad Air 2 received a gold case. In the subjective opinion of the author of this article, this color suits the tablet very well. It is exactly golden, not golden, not saturated, but very soft, with a pleasant metallic sheen. Air 2 looks very nice. On the rear panel is an eight-megapixel camera lens (the predecessor had only five megapixels).

Apple iPad Air 2 - rear panel

We believe that the situation with the exterior of the iPad Air will be the same as with the exterior of the MacBook Air. Apple didn't update appearance this laptop for several years, simply because the standard, one might say, has been reached. It will be very, very difficult to come up with something better, and it is hardly necessary at this stage of development. The same applies to the exterior of the iPad Air.

Judge for yourself: the body thickness of the device is minimal, it will hardly be possible to reduce it because of, for example, an audio jack. Of course, you can reduce the thickness of the frame around the display, but then it can be inconvenient to work with the gadget - there will be nothing to grab onto. The weight of the Air 2 by the standards of 10-inch tablets is very, very small. In general, externally, we liked the iPad Air 2 a lot. What does he have inside?

⇡ Specifications

	Apple iPad Air	Apple iPad Air 2
Display	9.7 inches, resolution 2048x1536 (Retina Display); IPS technology
Touch screen	Capacitive, up to 10 simultaneous touches
Air gap	There is	Not
Oleophobic coating	There is
Polarizing filter	There is
Platform	Apple A7: two Apple Cyclone cores (ARMv8 A32/A64); frequency 1.4 GHz; process technology 28 nm HKMG Apple M7 Coprocessor (NXP LPC 1800):	Apple A8X: three Apple Modified Cyclone cores (ARMv8 A32/A64); frequency 1.5 GHz; process technology 20 nm Apple M8 Coprocessor (NXP LPC 18B1UK): one ARM Cortex-M3 core (ARMv7-M)
Graphics controller	Imagination Technologies PowerVR G6430	Imagination Technologies PowerVR GX6650
RAM	1 GB LPDDR3	2 GB LPDDR3
Flash memory	16/32/64/128GB*	16/64/128 GB
Connectors	1 x Lightning 1 x 3.5mm headset jack 1 x Nano-SIM (optional)
cellular	External modem Qualcomm MDM9615, transceiver WTR1605L(optional): 3G: DC-HSPA+ (42 Mbps) 850/900/1900/2100 MHz; CDMA EV-DO 800/1900 MHz 4G: LTE Cat. 3 (102 Mbps) band 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26 Nano SIM	External modem Qualcomm MDM9625, transceiver WTR1625L(optional): 2G: GSM/GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900MHz 3G: DC-HSPA+ (42 Mbps) 850/900/1700/1900/2100 MHz; CDMA EV-DO 800/1900 MHz 4G: LTE Cat. 4 (150 Mbps) band 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 29, 38, 39, 40, 41 Nano SIM
WiFi	802.11a/b/g/n, 2.4/5 GHz MIMO 2x2 support	802.11a/b/g/n/ac, 2.4/5 GHz MIMO 2x2 support
Bluetooth	4.0
NFC	Not	Yes (NXP 65V10 NFC Controller)
IR port	Not
Navigation	GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS (optional)
Sensors	Light Sensor, Proximity Sensor, Accelerometer/Gyroscope, Magnetometer ( digital compass)	Ambient light sensor, proximity sensor, accelerometer/gyroscope, magnetometer (digital compass), barometer, fingerprint reader
Main camera	iSight: 5 MP (2592x1936), autofocus, no flash	iSight: 8 MP (3264x2448), autofocus, no flash
Front-camera	1.2 MP (1280x960), backlit matrix; no autofocus, no flash
Food	Non-removable battery 32.4 Wh (8827 mAh, 3.7 V)	Non-removable battery 27.3 Wh (7184 mAh, 3.7 V)
Dimensions	240x170mm Case thickness 7.5 mm	240x170mm Case Thickness 6.1mm
Weight	479 g	437 g (without built-in modem) 444 g (with built-in modem)
Water and dust protection	Not
Operating system	iOS 7 (possible upgrade to iOS 8.1)	iOS 8.1
Available body colors	space grey, silver	Space Grey, silver, gold
recommended price	From 19 490 rubles	From 24 490 rubles

* iPad versions Air with 64 and 128 GB are officially no longer sold

⇡ Display

Perhaps the screen is one of the few elements of the iPad Air 2 that has not undergone significant changes compared to the previous model. By and large, its characteristics have not changed radically since the days of the iPad 3. However, to be honest, it did not require a replacement - everything is so good. The full-sized iPad is still equipped with a 9.7-inch IPS-matrix with a resolution of 2048x1536 pixels. Accordingly, its pixel density is still the same high - 264 dpi. This is enough for comfortable work with a ten-inch tablet, and there is absolutely no need to increase it - the fonts are sharp, the picture at a distance of a half-bent arm does not hurt the eyes with a bold pixel.

The viewing angles of the screen are very wide, it is really convenient to watch movies and photos together on it - here the size is suitable, and the resolution is high, and there is no color distortion. The capacitive layer supports up to ten simultaneous touches, which can be tested and applied, for example, in standard application Garage band.

Apple iPad Air 2 - it is impossible to see individual dots on the display at a distance of a half-bent arm

However, there are some changes in the iPad Air 2 display. For example, air layer between protective glass and the screen itself has become much less noticeable, but it is still there. However, it did not interfere too much when working with the previous Air, but here it is completely invisible. Of course, the Air 2 display has a polarizing filter and an oleophobic (fat-repellent) layer. The display doesn't fade even in bright ambient light, thanks in part to a new anti-glare filter that dampens reflections a bit more effectively.

The margin of brightness at the screen of the second "Air" has slightly grown: the maximum luminosity of the white field has increased from 409 to 427.5 cd/m 2 . True, perhaps, again, the whole point is in the manufacturer of the matrix. The minimum backlight level is only 12 cd/m2. In the dark, the device is very gentle on the eyes.

The maximum luminosity of the black field with a sufficiently high margin of brightness is small - 0.4 cd/m 2 . This means blacks look deep even at 100% display backlight. The display is very contrasty - almost 1070:1, and this is when measured in an "honest" way: white and black are displayed on the screen in a ratio of 50/50.

The color temperature of the displays of both iPad Air is about the same. On average, it is 7000-7100 kelvin. Recall that the reference value is considered to be 6500 K. The deviation is insignificant, we did not see any noticeable “cold” shade on both screens. The color temperature is more natural.

Both displays are set up very carefully. All kinds of gamma curves - both grayscale and color components - are close to the reference curve. This means that the color reproduction of the screens is natural and believable. True, on the gamma curve of the gray color of the iPad Air 2 display, a small dip in the lower part came from somewhere, but it does not change the situation. When using the tablet, we did not notice any deviations in the transmission of light shades of gray.

The color gamut of the displays is the same - it almost completely matches the sRGB color space, which is very good. In general, the display is set up almost “according to the textbook”. There are so many photo editing apps for iPads.

⇡ Hardware and performance

In terms of technical stuffing iPad Air 2 - a phenomenon in many ways unique to Apple and the industry as a whole. It’s worth starting with the fact that this is the first gadget from Cupertino, which uses a platform with more than two cores. The system-on-a-chip A8X is installed in the device. You might think that this slightly a modified version of the A8 platform that is installed in the iPhone 6/6 Plus, but this is not entirely true. Well, or not at all: this is a fundamentally different SoC - much more powerful.

Apple A8X - a frame from the presentation of Apple

We have already given you the key difference between the X version: it uses three modified Cyclone cores, and not two, as in the regular A8. Their frequency is increased by 100 MHz - from 1.4 to 1.5 GHz. The 64-bit ARMv8-A instruction set is used, which Apple has switched to since the iPhone 5s. The chip is made at TSMC's Taiwanese factory using the most advanced manufacturing process that TSMC is capable of at the moment - 20 nm. Finer process technology contributes to energy savings or performance increase. From the presentation frame, it is easy to guess that Apple chose to increase the power of the chip.

Another equally important innovation is that Apple has finally decided to install two gigabytes of RAM in its gadget. We emphasize, with your permission, this significant fact: Air 2 is the first device of the company, which has 2 GB of RAM. Of course, "fast" LPDDR3 memory is used. The positive effect was not long in coming - the new Air passed the SunSpider cross-platform test in almost three hundred milliseconds - extremely quickly. The best result in our memory.

The graphics controller in the A8X is also not quite the same as in the "regular" A8 - if the latter uses the Imagination Technologies PowerVR GX6450, then the A8X uses the GX6650. In general, the only changed number speaks about the differences: if the GX6450 is a gluing of four modules, then the GX6650 is a gluing of six of the same modules. Apple itself is happy to talk about how far the graphics of the iPad Air 2 have gone from previous solutions. Let's say, in graphics tasks, iPad Air 2 overtakes the very first iPhone (which is 2G) by as much as 84 times. The benchmark results make it clear that the PowerVR GX6650 and the Apple A8X in general are really very cool things.

Air 2 is noticeably faster than the first Air, mini 2/3, iPhone 6/6 Plus. Moreover, the difference in gaming tests is so significant that it draws on a small revolution. It's no joke - three thousand frames "on the screen" in GFXBench 3. We admit that we have not seen this yet. In general, Air 2 openly and in some places even boldly claims to be the most powerful tablet 2014. Yes, we have not yet compared its achievements with the results of Tegra K1 and Qualcomm Adreno 420 as part of the Snapdragon 805, but, according to foreign colleagues, the new Air even in such a competition comes out the winner.

To be honest, watching the iPad Air 2 break benchmarks is a real treat for geeks. Both Airs were tested simultaneously, but only new tablet from Apple minted frame by frame so clearly, so smoothly that we were amazed and literally gave a standing ovation. The first Air, to his credit, was also good. However, he periodically stumbled, allowed himself to slow down a little, while nothing similar was noticed behind his successor. Not surprisingly, the Air 2 finished all tests noticeably earlier.

It is clear why the A8X platform did not go to the new iPhones - its power consumption is still not very suitable. And it’s very good that Apple chose the iPad Air 2 to test the new, really high capacities. After all, tablet computers require about more power - it is on them that resource-intensive three-dimensional toys are most often launched, many open programs and tabs in the browser. So two gigabytes of “RAM” is also very welcome here. Finally, I would like to note that the Apple iPad Air has not become obsolete in a year - its capabilities are enough for both multimedia and games. But Air 2 is faster in almost everything, well, it just has a margin for the future.

⇡ "Continuous work" aka Continuity

AT iPad review mini 3, we started talking about the new Continuity software package for iOS 8 (in Russian translation - “Continuous work”), which allows you to synchronize application data between mobile devices and computers on Mac OS X Yosemite. Recall the essence of this function: if you have a browser open on your mobile device with some loaded tab or a certain point on the map is loaded, you can open the corresponding application on a laptop or computer with the same data. This feature is called Handoff.

It is noteworthy that the iPad can be friends not only with the Mac, but also with the iPhone. Let's say you are reading an electronic document on a tablet, the smartphone is somewhere in another room. Suddenly on the iPhone arrived incoming call. If your tablet is configured with the Continuity option, you won't have to go to your smartphone. You can answer a call from your iPad (or Mac) without touching your phone.

Apple iPad Air 2 - the answer to incoming call iPhone

To enable this option of the "Continuous Work" package, you need to connect your iPhone and iPad (and / or Mac - if you want to answer calls from it too) to the same Wi-Fi network and sign in to the same iCloud account. After that, you need to sign in to FaceTime through the same account iCloud, and then make sure that the item “Cellular” is activated in the “Settings” menu iPhone calls". If everything is done correctly, the user will be able to make and answer calls from the iPad or Mac using FaceTime.

Apple iPad Air 2 - FaceTime settings

⇡ Camera

In Cupertino, they did not forget to update the main camera of the iPad Air. The first Eira used a five-megapixel sensor, to which we had well-founded complaints - it shot noticeably worse than the camera of its predecessor, the iPad 4: due to the fact that the Eira case was much thinner than the the camera had to be cut down a bit. For a tablet, in our subjective opinion, the rear camera is not critical at all, but it's still unpleasant when something is done worse in a new device than in its predecessor, right?

Apple iPad Air 2 - main camera (official photo)

And now Apple fixes the bugs. The Air 2 has a new eight-megapixel iSight camera that takes pictures with a resolution of 3264x2448 pixels. We already rolled out her lip that she moved to Air from iPhone 6/6 Plus, but we hasten to upset you: this is not so. The main camera of the iPad Air 2 has a much smaller physical pixel size than the camera of the new "iPhone" - 1.12 versus 1.5 microns. This means that it is able to catch less light, that is, it is less suitable for shooting in low light conditions. In addition, the optics of the Air 2 camera is also less fast: the maximum relative aperture is ƒ / 2.4 versus ƒ / 2.2 for the iPhone 6 lens. Finally, the Air 2 camera did not receive support for fast phase (PDAF - Phase Detection Autofocus) autofocus , which boasts "six". The tablet camera is focused in a standard way - by contrast.

		Apple iPad Air 2

The tablet's camera is great for capturing text. She copes with this task in any conditions, of course, except for complete darkness. Even in a photograph taken in low light, the text can be made out. The sharpness is almost uniform across the entire field of the frame, except that there is a slight “softness” towards the edges. In general, the Air 2 has a standard rear camera by the standards of 2014 - not good and not bad. She has no flash. On the front, 1.2-megapixel webcam, if desired, you can get a decent quality self-portrait. With its help, you can make video calls, as long as there is at least some kind of light source nearby. In general, nothing supernatural, but she copes with her tasks.

⇡ Offline work

The surgical operation to reduce the thickness of the case from 7.5 to 6.1 mm could not pass completely without a trace. Something engineers iPad Air 2 had to sacrifice. After a careful study of the technical characteristics of the device, it becomes clear what exactly they had to worsen: as is usually the case in such cases, the battery suffered. The first Air had a 32.4 Wh battery, while its successor had only 27.3 Wh.

However, the battery life of the Air 2 has not changed compared to its predecessor. Moreover, according to our tests, the gadget works even a little longer on a single battery charge than the first Air: that's what life-giving optimization does! In the mode of continuous video playback, with an active Wi-Fi connection and at maximum screen brightness, the gadget worked for eight hours. For a full-sized tablet, the figure is not a record, but very, very good. With moderate use, the battery of the tablet is more than enough for a day of battery life. If you do not use the gadget too actively, its battery can last for three to four days, depending on the usage scenario.

⇡ Conclusion

There will be no revelations at the end of this material: the new iPad Air 2 turned out to be better than its predecessor in all respects. Thinner and lighter body, more powerful hardware, more good camera- even the display has been improved, albeit not so much. In general, we really have a new generation of full-size Apple tablets. "Yabloko" literally restores our faith in the ten-inch format tablet computers. The gadget turned out great without embellishment. Well, the truth is: we did not expect Apple to make the Air 2 so attractive.

And that's about all we can say about him. It has one drawback - the price. The device costs a lot, and in the top configuration - frankly a lot, but in this case high price justified - the buyer really pays for all the newest, all the best. Finally, we note that if the iPad mini 3 has risen in price relative to how much mini 2 cost before its release, then in the case of Air, the price has remained unchanged: they ask for Air 2 as much as they wanted for the original Air. So, in our opinion, more honestly. Well, the fact that the latter has now fallen in price is a separate issue.

There was also a fly in the ointment - even despite the release of a major iOS 8.1 update, the system is far from the desired level of stability. Glitches occur on all devices, and the iPad Air 2 is no exception. I am glad at least that during the day of the test we did not meet anything critical or unique. The problem with the operating system is clearly temporary, but at the moment things are exactly like this and you should be prepared for this.

iOS 8.1 in all its glory:

The review turned out to be somehow too laudatory, but this is not from the desire to present the iPad Air 2 better than it really is. It's just that the tablet is not particularly worth scolding for. However, if you try very hard, then you can blame him for missed opportunities. This class of devices has been around for four years, and for this Apple time hasn't actually changed the pattern of tablet usage. iPad is single-tasking - the interface does not allow you to simultaneously operate several programs. Dual-window mode would solve the problem, but the iPad Air 2 does not have it. As well as there are no flexible system settings or full-fledged multitasking. Also, I would not hesitate to exchange "18% thinner" for an additional 2-3 hours of autonomy. Taking into account the fact that for many the iPad has become a companion computer, which is always with you, this watch will not be superfluous.

And yet, the iPad Air 2 is Apple's best tablet and the best tablet in existence. It looks great, is compact for a device with a screen of 9.7 inches, has the ultimate stuffing - from the processor to the camera. He can solve any problem that the existing software will provide. And he doesn't have any flaws.

If the question is whether to buy a full-size tablet Apple latest generations - the answer will definitely be in the affirmative. The iPad Air 2 will definitely not disappoint. But whether it is worth updating the owners of the first generations of "air" - I'm not sure. Of the obvious advantages of the novelty, it is worth highlighting more RAM, an improved screen, Touch ID and, possibly, a camera, the rest of the innovations are not so noticeable in daily use. Well, and more thickness, although it’s hard for me to imagine a person who, just for the sake of less thickness, will rush to update his faithful tablet.

Connection(iPad Air 2 Wi-Fi + LTE)	GSM 850/900/1800/1900; CDMA 800/1900; HSDPA 850/900/1700/1900/2100; CDMA2000 1xEV-DO; LTE 700/800/850/900/1800/1900/2100/2600; TD-LTE 1900/2300/2500/2600 (the set of supported standards depends on iPad models Air 2)
Data transfer	DC-HSDPA, 42 Mbps; HSDPA, 21 Mbps; HSUPA, 5.76 Mbps, LTE, 150 Mbps; EV-DO Rev. A, up to 3.1 Mbps
Chipset	Apple A8X (tri-core processor, 1.5 GHz), M8 motion co-processor
RAM	2 GB
Memory	16/64/128 GB storage
Screen	9.7" IPS 16M colors, 1536 x 2048 pixels, ~264 ppi, tempered glass
Wireless connections	Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual standard, hotspot mode; Bluetooth 4.0 LE, NFC (only Apple Pay)
Wired connection	USB 2.0
Camera	iSight: 8 MP backlit sensor, 3264x2448 pixel snapshots, 1080p @ 30fps video, 720p @ 120 fps (slow-motion), electronic stabilization, autofocus, touch focus, geo-tagging, face detection, simultaneous video and photo recording, panorama, HDR, continuous shooting facetime: 1.2 MP backlit sensor, 720p at 30 fps, HDR, continuous shooting
Navigation	A-GPS and GLONASS
Sensors	accelerometer, gyroscope, proximity, digital compass, barometer
Battery	Li-Po 27.3 Wh, 10 h in multimedia mode
Dimensions, weight	240 x 169.5 x 6.1mm, 437g (Wi-Fi) / 444g (LTE)
Set	Lightning cable, network Charger, card

Apple's next generation tablet is now available to buy. A separate presentation was devoted to the device, where it, along with iMac with a 5K screen, became the center of attention for technology lovers. iPad Air 2 has become thinner and lighter, its performance has improved, Apple traditionally pays attention to the constant improvement of features. Due to the abundance of information leaks, preliminary data on the tablet became known long before the announcement of the tablet. However, this did not affect all the qualities of the device, a number of characteristics, for example, the features of the processor, were made public later.

Apple was able to make the tablet a symbol of our time, these devices were invented long before the day the first iPad appeared. But these devices clearly owe fashion and popularity to Apple. A fashionable electronic gadget, a blogger's tool, a secretary's diary, a student's textbook, a DJ console, a medical card in a hospital, a pilot's assistant - there are a lot of use cases, everyone chooses a convenient option for themselves. In their Apple presentations likes to show beautiful videos, how devices help people. And this is true - a huge software base allows you to turn the iPad into almost anything.

The new iPad Air 2 will be sold alongside the previous generation iPad Air. Perhaps now it will be more difficult to choose a tablet from Apple. They are both good, but the torment of choice, to save money, or vice versa, to give preference to a more advanced device in terms of technological progress, will surely visit a potential buyer. Let's look at what the new product from Cupertino is good for and how Apple will fight off its competitors, defending market share in different countries.

It should be noted that the share of Apple tablets in Russia continues to decrease. According to our forecasts, next year it will be less than 10% (now 11-12%), consumer interest is shifting towards tablets priced under 10,000 rubles, where Apple products are not represented. meanwhile, this category already occupies more than 45% in sales in Russia.

According to the analytical company IDC, prepared specifically for Hi-Tech.Mail.Ru, the share of tablets under control operating system iOS shrank 36.5% (H1 2014 vs. 1H 2013) and the entire tablet market fell 38% in monetary terms.

Specifications

• OS: iOS 8.1
• Screen: IPS, IGZO, 2048x1536, 9.7'', 264 ppi Laminated display
• Processor: Apple A8x, 3 cores, 1.5 GHz, 64-bit, M8 coprocessor
• Memory: 16, 64 or 128 GB
• Camera: iSight 8MP, slow motion, autofocus, HDR, Full HD video recording, front-facing FaceTime HD
• Connectivity: Wi-Fi 802.11ac MIMO, Bluetooth 4.0, 2G/3G/4G, nanoSIM
• Dimensions: 240x169.5x6.1 mm, weight 437 (444) g, Wi-Fi/Wi-Fi+LTE
• Touch ID fingerprint reader

Set

The delivery set has remained unchanged for many years. It is quite modest and includes only a power supply, a cable and a clip to remove the SIM card, if we are talking about the version with LTE. Of course, you can find a couple of stickers with an apple and completely quick guide user.

Design

Visually, we still have the same iPad Air that debuted last year. It would seem that the device is already thin and light, but Apple made it even smaller. The use of new laminated glass made the case even thinner. Now this figure is only 6.1 mm, which is 18% less than the iPad Air. I wonder how the Air 3 will turn out, because the case is already very, very thin. Therefore, I have no doubt that fans of bending devices will be able to test the tablet for strength. A large area and minimal thickness will clearly help the iPad Air 2 become the hero of another viral masterpiece.

As before, they did not save on materials - the body is entirely made of aluminum. The build quality is excellent and the device looks and feels expensive. The golden color of the case, which first appeared at Apple last year, is now available for the tablets of the American brand. Thanks to him, you can immediately understand that in the hands of a novelty, and not a device of the old generation.

The side design has changed slightly: the buttons located on the side have now received a new shape, and at the same time the screen rotation switch, which was also responsible for switching to silent mode, was removed from here.

The frames around the screen are still small, for a large device, the iPad Air 2 turned out to be very mobile and convenient to take with you, even if there is no question of carrying a tablet in jacket pockets. Still, it is too big and a more compact mini will fit better for this.

Screen

The screen resolution is 2048x1536 pixels. The surface is protected by glass, a laminated coating is now used, which made it possible to retain all the previous advantages, while making the device even thinner. The screen with excellent sensitivity, high-quality oleophobic coating and error-free response deserves high praise. Apple notes that the new screen has received an improved anti-glare coating. According to the company, the difference is 56%, but if you take Air and Air 2, going out with them, there is not much difference - both fade in the sun, in direct sunlight the data is hard to see equally bad.

Detailed testing of the screen was carried out by our expert Mikhail Kuznetsov:

Screen of the new Apple versions iPad Air has undergone small but pleasant changes. The characteristics have not changed - the resolution is 2048x1536 and the pixel density is 264 ppi - it still looks decent, there is nothing to complain about. However, now there is no air gap between the matrix and the outer glass, due to this, the anti-reflective properties have improved - the display has fewer internal reflections. Viewing angles have also become wider thanks to this solution. Actually, a screen without an air gap is the main innovation. The brightness margin is up to 407 cd / m2 at maximum - this is quite enough in a typical use case. The contrast ratio reached 1063:1, this indicator remained practically unchanged. As already mentioned, the main increase in quality was achieved due to a more efficient structure.

Gamma has an optimal value of 2.25, and the indicator is quite linear throughout the entire range. All midtones are displayed with the correct brightness, dark and light areas of the image have good detail.

The average color temperature is about 7000K, the image tone is slightly "colder" than the reference one.

The blue component is slightly knocked out in the color balance. The average Delta E error is about 5.32 units, the deviations are not too critical. Visually, the gray scale is very even, with a slight cold tint.

The situation inside the color gamut shows that the deviations were kept within reasonable limits.

A test on 24 ColorChecker templates gives the following result: the average Delta E color error is about 3.01 units. Distortions are not critical at all, natural colors look adequate. Generally, Apple screen iPad Air 2 has retained the main advantages - excellent clarity and high-quality color reproduction. At the same time, the design of the display without an air gap has improved the perceived quality. There are fewer reflections on the screen, which means that the image looks more confident in different lighting conditions. Balanced characteristics allow us to assert that the screen will please the user in a variety of usage scenarios - the image will be at its best in any case.

Performance

Apple iPad Air 2 features a new, more powerful stuffing. As before, a 64-bit architecture is offered, which is represented by the Apple A8X chip, which has become the most powerful solution on the market, overtaking even the very high-performance graphics from NVIDIA, the notorious Tegra K1. Like its predecessor, the tablet remains cold in games, and as a multimedia entertainment device, it is very good. But, at the same time, it is still unclear what games can unlock the potential of such graphics. But the iPad Air 2 is still faster than the first generation tablet. The difference may not be very critical, but nevertheless, it is noticeable. A triple-core processor is first seen in Apple products, and this phenomenon can be called very exotic on the market. The Apple A8X is 40% faster than the old A7 in the iPad Air, with a 2.5x increase in graphics performance.

Finally, Apple first showed an iOS device with 2 GB of RAM.

The Apple iPad Air 2 is the company's first iOS device with this amount of RAM. Built-in memory can be 16, 64 or 128 GB. The 32 GB version has been removed, so you either need to be content with the minimum amount, or pay a significant amount for more space.

Interestingly, the case has become smaller and thinner, the battery capacity has decreased, while performance has seriously increased, and the Apple iPad Air 2 works all the same 10 hours as devices of previous generations.

The device is running iOS 8.1, now instead of the removed lever, which was on the side, there is an additional button in the control panel, it is responsible for blocking the automatic rotation of the screen.

A tablet with an aspect ratio of 4:3 is not the most the best solution to watch the video. Given the traditional Apple restrictions on data transfer and content downloading, everything is much less convenient here than on Android or Windows. But, at the same time, there are enough players to watch a variety of videos, and large amounts of memory turn the iPad into an excellent mobile cinema center. The device plays 1080p movies without any problems, data can also be broadcast to the home system directly from the tablet, for example, when help from Apple TV. The speakers are sonorous, despite the thin dimensions, the tablet turned out to be loud, in no way inferior to its predecessors, so as a small TV it will be very good.

As a player, the iPad also does not save, you can listen to your favorite tracks by connecting headphones. Traditionally, there is no radio, but there is support for Internet radio. The sound quality is great, the volume margin is large.

Data transfer

The tablet received a modified Wi-Fi module. Wi-Fi 802.11ac, HT80 with MIMO is now supported. With the appropriate equipment in wireless networks iPad Air 2 should show faster data download speeds, and at the same time work more stable. In addition, the device now supports up to 20 LTE bands, as before, 2G/3G/3G networks are supported. Incidentally, this is the first generation of Apple tablets to offer a new SIM card. Now the buyer does not have to go to the operator to select a tariff, but chooses the necessary options on his own. The card will be installed in the device itself. This service is currently only valid for the US and UK.

Fingerprint scanner

In the fight for the safety of personal data, Apple offers to use its own development - the Touch ID fingerprint scanner. New button replaced the old element, so the Home key has now become even more useful and important. The scanner works fine, the sensitivity is the same high level, the same as the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. The device remembers up to 10 fingerprints, the data is stored locally in the device itself and is not transferred to external servers. By the way, there is no NFC chip that would be useful for Apple Pay payments. In such cases, TouchID works as an additional link in the security chain of data transfer when paying. However, the tablet is a gadget healthy enough to wave it in front of the terminal at the checkout.

Camera

If in the very first generation of Apple tablets there was no camera at all, then by the sixth generation the device acquired not only the front FaceTime, which shoots in HD resolution, but also a more advanced iSight module located at the back. The Apple iPad Air 2 sports an 8MP f/2.4 sensor. Of course, you should not expect the same quality from it that the iPhone 5s demonstrates, not to mention the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, but, nevertheless, the tablet, thanks to the five-element lens, takes pictures at the level of quite soundly shooting iPhone photo 5.

Now the gadget has also been taught to conduct continuous shooting, shoot slow motion video at a speed of 120 frames per second, at the same time the tablet will be able to make Time-lapses. There is Full HD video recording, as well as a FaceTime HD front camera, which is useful for video conferencing or self-portraits. Panoramas are created in 43-megapixel resolution, which, if desired, can always be enlarged and considered some part of the frame. But the flash did not appear, in the dark it will be problematic to remove anything.

Versions

iPad Air 2 is presented in three colors at once - in addition to already good known versions in dark gray and silver, a model in golden color was also born. You can choose the amount of memory between 16, 64 or 128 GB. The 32 GB variant has been removed from sale. As before, versions are available with Wi-Fi or together with Wi-Fi and LTE. The ability to access the Internet wherever you want costs a lot - you have to pay extra 6 thousand rubles.

Opinion Hi-Tech.Mail.ru

innovations in flagship tablet There are a lot of Apple today. New more powerful processor, increased RAM, Touch ID, improved camera and more compact size, along with other practical improvements will be the key advantages of the device. But users do not change tablets as often as smartphones, so there is no need to say that a sales deficit is expected. Although it should be noted that after five years from the date of the announcement first iPad, tablets have changed the market - people are more likely to buy these devices than laptops. There are enough opportunities for routine tasks, while the difference in size, working time and mobility is very noticeable.

iPad owners Air last year is unlikely to run for updated version- nevertheless, the tablet is not among the essential devices like smartphones, which is shown by sales statistics. By the way, for Apple in Russia, the past year was disappointing - expensive iPads sold noticeably worse than before, and given that you have to pay even more for the new generation more money, then other brands will surely take advantage of this, offering, perhaps, not such a level of manufacturability, but winning in price.

As for specific figures, according to our research of unofficial retail, no more than 1,000 new-generation tablets are expected in Russia at the beginning of sales. For comparison: 4 times more devices were imported last year. This is due to the almost simultaneous start of sales in Russia of PCT models, which are more profitable in purchase than unofficial ones, due to the greatly increased exchange rate. First of all, the iPad Air 2 will compete with the old Air, which is cheaper, but at the same time has relevant qualities today.

Alexander Pobyvanets, [email protected]

Information about the make, model, and alternative names of a particular device, if any.

Design

Information about the dimensions and weight of the device, presented in different units of measurement. Used materials, suggested colors, certificates.

Width Width information refers to the horizontal side of the device in its standard orientation during use.	240 mm (millimeters) 24 cm (centimeters) 0.79 ft 9.45in
Height Height information refers to the vertical side of the device in its standard orientation during use.	169.5 mm (millimeters) 16.95 cm (centimeters) 0.56 ft 6.67in
Thickness Information about the thickness of the device in different units measurements.	6.1 mm (millimeters) 0.61 cm (centimeters) 0.02 ft 0.24in
The weight Information about the weight of the device in different units of measurement.	444 g (grams) 0.98 lbs 15.66oz
Volume Approximate volume of the device, calculated from dimensions provided by the manufacturer. Refers to devices with the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped.	248.15 cm³ (cubic centimeters) 15.07 in³ (cubic inches)
Colors Information about the colors in which this device is offered for sale.	Silver Golden Grey
Housing materials The materials used to make the body of the device.	Aluminium alloy

SIM card

The SIM card is used in mobile devices to store data that certifies the authenticity of mobile service subscribers.

Mobile networks

A mobile network is a radio system that allows multiple mobile devices to communicate with each other.

GSM GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) is designed to replace the analogue mobile network (1G). For this reason, GSM is often referred to as a 2G mobile network. It is enhanced by the addition of GPRS (General Packet Radio Services) and later EDGE (Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution) technologies.	GSM 850 MHz GSM 900 MHz GSM 1800 MHz GSM 1900 MHz
CDMA CDMA (Code-Division Multiple Access) is a channel access method used in communications in mobile networks. Compared to other 2G and 2.5G standards such as GSM and TDMA, it provides higher data transfer rates and the ability to connect more consumers at the same time.	CDMA 800 MHz CDMA 1900 MHz
CDMA2000 CDMA2000 is a group of 3G mobile network standards based on CDMA. Their benefits include a stronger signal, fewer interruptions and network outages, support for analog signal, wide spectral coverage, etc.	1xEV-DO Rev. A 1xEV-DO Rev. B
UMTS UMTS is short for Universal Mobile Telecommunications System. It is based on the GSM standard and belongs to 3G mobile networks. Developed by 3GPP and its biggest advantage is to provide more speed and spectral efficiency with W-CDMA technology.	UMTS 850 MHz UMTS 900 MHz UMTS 1700/2100 MHz UMTS 1900 MHz UMTS 2100 MHz
LTE LTE (Long Term Evolution) is defined as fourth generation (4G) technology. It is developed by 3GPP based on GSM/EDGE and UMTS/HSPA to increase the capacity and speed of wireless mobile networks. The subsequent development of technologies is called LTE Advanced.	LTE-TDD 1900 MHz (B39) LTE-TDD 2300 MHz (B40) LTE-TDD 2500 MHz (B41) LTE-TDD 2600 MHz (B38) LTE 700 MHz Class 13 LTE 700 MHz Class 17 LTE 800 MHz LTE 850 MHz LTE 900 MHz LTE 1700/2100 MHz LTE 1800 MHz LTE 1900 MHz LTE 2100 MHz LTE 2600 MHz

Mobile technologies and data rates

Communication between devices in mobile networks is carried out through technologies that provide different data transfer rates.

Operating system

The operating system is the system software that manages and coordinates the operation of the hardware components in the device.

SoC (System on a Chip)

System on a chip (SoC) includes all the most important hardware components of a mobile device in one chip.

SoC (System on a Chip) System on a chip (SoC) integrates various hardware components such as processor, GPU, memory, peripherals, interfaces, etc., as well as the software necessary for their operation.	Apple A8X
Technological process Information about technological process on which the chip is made. The value in nanometers measures half the distance between the elements in the processor.	20 nm (nanometers)
Processor (CPU) The main function of the processor (CPU) mobile device is the interpretation and execution of instructions contained in software applications.	Apple Cyclone ARMv8
Processor bit depth The bit depth (bits) of a processor is determined by the size (in bits) of registers, address buses, and data buses. 64-bit processors have more high performance compared to 32-bit processors, which for their part are more productive than 16-bit processors.	64 bit
Instruction Set Architecture Instructions are commands by which the software sets/controls the operation of the processor. Information about the instruction set (ISA) that the processor can execute.	ARMv8-A
First level cache (L1) Cache memory is used by the processor to reduce access time to more frequently accessed data and instructions. L1 (level 1) cache is small and much faster than system memory, and other cache levels. If the processor does not find the requested data in L1, it continues to look for them in the L2 cache. With some processors, this search is performed simultaneously in L1 and L2.	64 kB + 64 kB (kilobytes)
Second level cache (L2) L2 (level 2) cache is slower than L1, but in return it has a larger capacity, allowing more data to be cached. It, like L1, is much faster than system memory (RAM). If the processor does not find the requested data in L2, it continues to look for it in the L3 cache (if available) or RAM.	2048 KB (kilobytes) 2 MB (megabytes)
L3 Cache L3 (level 3) cache is slower than L2, but in return it has a larger capacity, allowing more data to be cached. It, like L2, is much faster than system memory (RAM).	4096 KB (kilobytes) 4 MB (megabytes)
Number of processor cores The processor core performs program instructions. There are processors with one, two or more cores. Having more cores increases performance by allowing many instructions to be executed in parallel.	3
Processor clock speed The clock speed of a processor describes its speed in terms of cycles per second. It is measured in megahertz (MHz) or gigahertz (GHz).	1500 MHz (megahertz)
Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) handles calculations for various 2D/3D graphic applications. In mobile devices, it is used most often by games, consumer interface, video applications, etc.	PowerVR GXA6850
Number of GPU cores Like the CPU, the GPU is made up of several working parts called cores. They handle the graphical calculations of different applications.	8
The amount of random access memory (RAM) Random access memory (RAM) is used by the operating system and all installed applications. Data stored in RAM is lost when the device is turned off or restarted.	2 GB (gigabytes)
Type of random access memory (RAM) Information about the type of random access memory (RAM) used by the device.	LPDDR3
	M8 motion processor

Built-in memory

Each mobile device has a built-in (non-removable) memory with a fixed amount.

Screen

The screen of a mobile device is characterized by its technology, resolution, pixel density, diagonal length, color depth, etc.

Type/technology One of the main characteristics of the screen is the technology by which it is made and on which the image quality of information directly depends.	IPS
Diagonal For mobile devices, the screen size is expressed in terms of its diagonal length, measured in inches.	9.7in 246.38 mm (millimeters) 24.64 cm (centimeters)
Width Approximate Screen Width	7.76in 197.1 mm (millimeters) 19.71 cm (centimeters)
Height Approximate Screen Height	5.82in 147.83 mm (millimeters) 14.78 cm (centimeters)
Aspect Ratio The ratio of the dimensions of the long side of the screen to its short side	1.333:1 4:3
Permission Screen resolution indicates the number of pixels vertically and horizontally on the screen. More a high resolution means sharper image detail.	2048 x 1536 pixels
Pixel Density Information about the number of pixels per centimeter or inch of the screen. Higher density allows information to be shown on the screen in clearer detail.	264 ppi (pixels per inch) 103 ppcm (pixels per centimeter)
Color depth Screen color depth reflects the total number of bits used for the color components in a single pixel. Information about the maximum number of colors the screen can display.	24 bit 16777216 flowers
Screen area Approximate percentage of screen space on the front of the device.	71.86% (percentage)
Other characteristics Information about other functions and features of the screen.	capacitive Multitouch
	Oleophobic (lipophobic) coating LED-backlit retina display Full Lamination Technology antireflective coating

Sensors

Different sensors perform different quantitative measurements and convert physical indicators into signals that are recognized by the mobile device.

rear camera

The main camera of a mobile device is usually located on its rear panel and can be combined with one or more additional cameras.

Sensor type Information about the type of camera sensor. Some of the most widely used sensor types in mobile device cameras are CMOS, BSI, ISOCELL, etc.	CMOS BSI (backside illumination)
Svetlosila	f/2.4
Number of optical elements (lenses) Information about the number of optical elements (lenses) of the camera.	5
Image Resolution One of the main characteristics of cameras is resolution. It represents the number of horizontal and vertical pixels in an image. For convenience, smartphone manufacturers often list resolution in megapixels, giving an approximate number of pixels in millions.	3264 x 2448 pixels 7.99 MP (megapixels)
Video Resolution	1920 x 1080 pixels 2.07 MP (megapixels)
	30 fps (frames per second)
Characteristics Information about additional software and hardware features of the rear (rear) camera.	autofocus Burst shooting Digital Image Stabilization geo tags panoramic shooting HDR shooting Touch focus Face recognition Exposure compensation Self-timer
	IR filter

Front-camera

Smartphones have one or more front cameras of various designs - a pop-up camera, a PTZ camera, a cutout or hole in the display, a camera under the display.

Svetlosila Luminosity (also known as f-stop, aperture, or f-number) is a measure of the size of a lens aperture that determines the amount of light that enters the sensor. The lower the f-number, the larger the aperture and the more light reaches the sensor. Usually, the number f is indicated, which corresponds to the maximum possible aperture of the aperture.	f/2.2
Video Resolution Information about the maximum video resolution that the camera can record.	1280 x 720 pixels 0.92 MP (megapixels)
Video recording speed (frame rate) Information about the maximum recording rate (frames per second, fps) supported by the camera at maximum resolution. Some of the most basic video recording speeds are 24 fps, 25 fps, 30 fps, 60 fps.	30 fps (frames per second)
	1.2MP

Audio

Information about the type of speakers and audio technologies supported by the device.

Radio

The radio of the mobile device is a built-in FM receiver.

Location determination

Information about navigation and location technologies supported by the device.

WiFi

Wi-Fi is a technology that provides wireless communication for short distance data transmission between different devices.

Bluetooth

Bluetooth is a standard for secure wireless data transfer between different types of devices over short distances.

USB

USB (Universal Serial Bus) is an industry standard that allows different electronic devices to communicate.

Headphone jack

This is an audio connector, which is also called an audio jack. The most widely used standard in mobile devices is the 3.5mm headphone jack.

Connecting devices

Information about other important connection technologies supported by the device.

Browser

A web browser is a software application for accessing and viewing information on the Internet.

Video file formats/codecs

Mobile devices support various video file formats and codecs, which store and encode/decode digital video data, respectively.

Battery

Mobile device batteries differ from each other in their capacity and technology. They provide the electrical charge they need to function.

Capacity The capacity of a battery indicates the maximum charge it can store, measured in milliamp-hours.	8600 mAh (milliamp-hours)
Type of The type of battery is determined by its structure and, more specifically, by the chemicals used. Exist different types batteries, with lithium-ion and lithium-ion polymer batteries most commonly used in mobile devices.	Li-polymer (Li-polymer)
Talk time 2G Talk time in 2G is the period of time during which the battery is completely discharged during a continuous conversation in a 2G network.	10 h (hours) 600 min (minutes) 0.4 days
3G talk time Talk time in 3G is the period of time during which the battery is completely discharged during a continuous conversation in a 3G network.	10 h (hours) 600 min (minutes) 0.4 days
4G talk time Talk time in 4G is the period of time during which the battery is completely discharged during a continuous conversation in a 4G network.	10 h (hours) 600 min (minutes) 0.4 days
Characteristics Information about some additional features device battery.	Fixed

Part 1: design, accessories, screens and software

Exactly one year ago, on November 3, 2013, we told you about the first iPad Air. It's time to return to Apple tablets, since this year Russian sales of new iPads started almost simultaneously with American ones. In addition, this time we have not one, but two new products at once: iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3. And although both of these products are not revolutionary (the iPad mini 3 looks especially strange), they can still be considered role models and the main rivals for the entire army of Android tablets. Therefore, we have studied them with the utmost care.

Recall that both gadgets were presented at the presentation on October 16, which caused very conflicting reviews and opinions. I was confused by the leapfrog of names: like a few years ago with The New iPad, which then became iPad 3, Apple made confusion by renaming last year's iPad mini Retina to iPad mini 2 and giving the new iPad mini with Retina display serial number 3. However, the main surprise turned out to be the fact that the iPad mini 3's changes from last year's version were limited to the addition of a Touch ID sensor and a gold version of the case, as well as the disappearance of the version with 32 GB of internal flash memory. There have never been such strange updates in the history of Apple!

But the iPad Air 2 has been updated much more significantly. In addition to Touch ID and a gold-colored case, it boasts the new Apple A8X SoC and an even thinner case than the first iPad Air. In addition, the camera has been updated.

Video review

To get started, we suggest watching our video review of the Apple iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3 tablets:

Now let's look at the characteristics of new products.

Specifications

Technical Apple specifications iPad Air 2:

• SoC Apple A8X 1.5 GHz 64-bit (3 cores, Cyclone architecture based on ARMv8)
• PowerVR GX6650 GPU
• Apple M8 motion co-processor including GPS, barometer, accelerometer, gyroscope and compass
• RAM 2 GB
• Flash memory 16 / 64 / 128 GB
• No memory card support
• Operating system iOS 8.1
• Touchscreen IPS, 9.7″, 2048×1536 (264 ppi), capacitive, multi-touch
• Cameras: front (1.2 MP, 720p FaceTime video) and rear (8 MP, 1080p video)
• Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n/ac (2.4 and 5 GHz; MIMO support)
• Cellular (optional): UMTS/HSPA/HSPA+/DC-HSDPA (850, 900, 1700/2100, 1900, 2100 MHz); GSM/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz), LTE Bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26
• Bluetooth 4.0
• Touch ID fingerprint scanner, NFC chip
• 3.5mm stereo headset jack, Lightning dock connector
• Li-polymer battery 7340 mAh
• A-GPS (in version with cellular module)
• Dimensions 240×170×6.1 mm
• Weight 437 g (manufacturer's declared weight of the version without cellular module) / 451 g (our measurement of the version with cellular module)

We won't include technical characteristics of iPad mini 3 in a separate list, but we will include them in a comparison table with competitors. However, first let's see how the characteristics of the iPad Air 2 compare with its predecessor and main competitors.

		iPad Air	Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5	Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet
Screen		IPS, 9.7″, 2048×1536 (264 ppi)	SuperAMOLED, 10.5″, 2560×1600 (287 ppi)	IPS, 10.1″, 1920×1200 (218 ppi)
SoC (processor)	Apple A8 1.5GHz 64bit (3 cores, Cyclone architecture based on ARMv8) + M8 coprocessor	Apple A7 1.4GHz 64bit (2 cores, Cyclone architecture based on ARMv8) + M7 coprocessor	Samsung Exynos 5 Octa (4 cores @1.9GHz & 4 cores @1.3GHz)	Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 @2.3GHz (4x Krait 400 cores)
GPU	PowerVR GX6650	PowerVR G6430	Mali-T628 MP6	Adreno 330
Flash memory	16 / 64 / 128 GB	16 / 32 / 64 / 128 GB	16 GB	16 to 32 GB
Connectors		Lightning dock connector, 3.5mm headphone jack		Micro-USB (with OTG and MHL support), 3.5mm headphone jack
Memory card support	No	No	microSD (up to 128 GB)	microSD (up to 128 GB)
RAM	2 GB	1 GB	3 GB	3 GB
cameras	front (1.2 MP, 720p FaceTime video) and rear (8 MP, 1080p video)	front (1.2 MP, 720p FaceTime video) and rear (5 MP, 1080p video)	front (2.1 MP, 1080p video transmission) and rear (8 MP; 1080p video shooting)	front (2.2 MP, 1080p video transmission) and rear (8.1 MP; 1080p video shooting)
Internet		Wi-Fi (optional 3G, also 4G LTE)		Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac MIMO (optional 3G and LTE)
Battery capacity (mAh)	7340	8820	7900	6000
Operating system	Apple iOS 8.1	Apple iOS 7.0 (upgrade to iOS 8.1 available)	Google Android 4.4	Google Android 4.4
Dimensions (mm)*	240×170×6.1	240×170×7.5	247×177×6.6	266×172×6.4
Weight (g)**	451	478	467	439
Average price***	T-11153497	T-10548616	T-10890859	T-10728784
iPad Air 2 deals	L-11153497-10

** version with cellular module
*** for version with minimum flash memory and communication capabilities

According to formal features (the number of CPU cores, the amount of RAM), Apple products have been inferior to top competitors from the Android camp for several years. However, we even had about the senselessness of any conclusions about this. The only figures that in this case are objective and available for comparison without reservations are weight and size parameters. And according to them, the iPad Air 2 really looks very good: it is distinguished by a record low thickness, coupled with a mass (only Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet surpasses the novelty in the last parameter).

On the other hand, one cannot say that the iPad Air 2 is radically thinner and lighter than its competitors. The difference is only a few percent. Don't forget, though, that unlike the competitors' plastic products, the iPad Air and iPad Air 2 are made from a single piece of aluminum.

Now let's take a look at the iPad mini 3's specs versus the competition.

	iPad mini 3	Sony Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact	Nvidia Shield Tablet	Samsung Galaxy Tab S 8.4
Screen	IPS, 7.9″, 2048×1536 (326 ppi)	IPS, 8″, 1920×1200 (283 ppi)	IPS, 8″, 1920×1200 (283 ppi)	SuperAMOLED, 8.4″, 2560×1600 (359 ppi)
SoC (processor)	Apple A7 @1.3 GHz (2 Cyclone cores, 64-bit)	Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 (4x Krait 400 @2.5GHz)	Nvidia Tegra K1 (4x Cortex-A15 @2.2GHz and an auxiliary companion core)	Exynos 5 Octa 5420 (4x Cortex-A15 @1.9GHz & 4x Cortex-A7 @1.3GHz)
GPU	PowerVR G6430	Adreno 330	Nvidia GK20A @950MHz	Mali-T628 MP6
Flash memory	16 to 128 GB	16 GB	16 / 32 GB	16 GB
Connectors	Lightning, 3.5mm headphone jack		Micro-USB, 3.5mm headphone jack, Mini-HDMI	Micro-USB, 3.5mm headphone jack
Memory card support	No	microSD (up to 128 GB)	microSD (up to 128 GB)	microSD (up to 128 GB)
RAM	1 GB	2 GB	2 GB	3 GB
cameras	front (1.2 MP) and rear (5 MP; 1080p video)	front (2.2 MP, 1080p video) and rear (8.1 MP; 1080p video)	front (5 MP, 720p video) and rear (5 MP; 1080p video)	front (2.1 MP, 1080p video) and rear (8 MP; 1080p video)
Internet		Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n MIMO (2.4 GHz + 5 GHz) (optional - 3G and LTE)	Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n MIMO (2.4 GHz + 5 GHz) (32 GB version - 3G and LTE)	Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac MIMO (2.4 GHz + 5 GHz) (optional - 3G and LTE)
Operating system	Apple iOS 7	Google Android 4.4.2	Google Android 4.4.2	Google Android 4.4.2
Battery capacity (mAh)	6471	4500	5338 (presumably)	4900
Dimensions* (mm)	200×134×7.5	213×124×6.4	221×126×9.2	213×125×6.6
Weight (g)	339	270	390	297
Average price**	T-11153500	T-11154285	T-10983937	T-10890863
iPad mini 3 deals	L-11153500-10

*according to the manufacturer
** for version with minimum flash memory and communication capabilities

For a year (and iPad mini 3 is, in fact, the same last year's iPad mini Retina), very serious competitors appeared in the camp of compact tablets: in particular, samsung galaxy Tab S 8.4 with Super AMOLED display and Nvidia Shield Tablet with record-breaking performance (greatly faster than the Apple A7 found in the iPad mini 3). In general, the position of the iPad mini 3 in the top segment is far from being as cloudless as it was for its predecessor when it first appeared. Today, for almost any parameter (screen, performance, camera, weight, thickness), you can find a stronger solution.

However, in terms of the combination of properties, it still remains a very successful model, and the iPad mini 2 price drop by $100 (alas, eaten up in Russia by the change in the dollar exchange rate) makes it an even more attractive mid-budget solution.

But let's take a closer look at Apple's new products.

Packaging and equipment

The packaging of the iPad Air 2 is almost the same as the packaging of the previous generation tablet. Only the picture here is even more minimalistic, emphasizing the thickness of the updated device.

As for the bundle, everything here is also similar to the iPad Air: leaflets, a charger (10 W, 2.1 A, 5.1 V), a Lightning cable, stickers and a key to remove the SIM card cradle.

The design of the box and the equipment of the iPad mini 3 is similar to the iPad Air 2.

Design

Now let's look at the design. As already noted, the appearance of the iPad mini 3 does not differ from its predecessor, with the exception of the appearance of a golden color variant. And since the iPad Air 2 is thinner than the iPad Air and the iPad mini remains the same, the iPad Air 2 is noticeably thinner than the iPad mini 3.

As for the color (the iPad Air 2 also has a golden color), it looks noble and elegant. This is not deliberately “golden”, but a soft beautiful shade, which, depending on the external lighting, looks either light gray or bronze.

Alas, on the 4G versions of both tablets, the white plastic insert necessary for normal reception looks rather awkward and alien cellular signal. Well, on the other hand, everyone around will see that you have exactly the version with 4G, and not the cheaper one :)

In terms of placement of controls, the main difference between the iPad Air 2 and the original iPad Air is the lack of a lock lever (in the iPad Air, it was located above the volume keys). Well, the second distinguishing point is the expansion of the functionality of the Home button, which is now equipped with a fingerprint scanner.

The look of the button exactly matches that of the iPhone 5s / 6 / 6 Plus. The fingerprint scanner works perfectly: you can take the iPad in any convenient way, the fingerprint will be recognized instantly. According to subjective feelings, it is better than the iPhone 5s, where the percentage of unrecognized touches was still higher. True, we used the iPhone 5s for almost a year, and the iPad Air 2 - only a week. So, perhaps, over the year the statistics will be less positive.

The size of the frames around the screen, the width and height of the iPad Air 2 body remained unchanged. However, today it is one of the best indicators. And it's very interesting in what direction iPad design will develop in the future, because now both the width of the side frames and the thickness are close to the threshold beyond which it will already begin to cause inconvenience.

And the thickness of the connectors leaves almost no room for maneuver: for example, there is only about 1 mm above the Lightning, which could be saved without affecting the connector itself. And a 3.5 mm mini-jack is unlikely to fit into a thinner case. This, of course, applies only to the iPad Air 2. Because the iPad mini 3 still has room to reduce in size.

Everything else in the iPad Air 2 has remained unchanged compared to the previous version: from the main points (body shape, rounded edges) to the details (the shape of the nanoSIM card tray in the 4G version).

In general, the changes, of course, cannot be called revolutionary. But does it really matter if the iPad Air 2, like its predecessor a year ago, just does not want to let go? During the first days, you constantly want to take it, once again admire the thickness and low weight, twist it in your hands ... It would seem that Apple has not done anything radically new, and it is becoming more and more difficult to surprise the user. And yet, the products of the apple corporation have not lost their main property: the ability to please the user. It's that simple. This is something that you enjoy holding in your hands. And what could be more important than this?

Concluding the conversation about design, we note that Apple's PR service gave us an iPad Air 2 with a branded Smart Cover. Many Apple tablet users are well acquainted with this accessory, and for them it will not be a discovery. But to the rest, we can say that the cover is really very pleasant and comfortable: the polyurethane coating on the top and the microfiber inner surface (it comes into contact with the screen of the tablet when we close the cover) are extremely pleasant to the touch, and in general the accessory does not make the tablet bulky or thick, but it protects the screen well and helps to set it on the table at an angle.

In turn, the iPad mini 3 arrived for testing in a Smart Case. On the one hand, it has a big plus: it protects the tablet not only from the side of the screen, like Smart Cover, but in its entirety. In addition, the entire outer surface of the Smart Case is made of expensive aniline leather. But although the knowledge of this warms the soul, from the point of view of everyday use this is a less practical solution: any small scratches on this leather are clearly visible (and such scratches will appear even with careful use). In addition, small folds are visible on the folds on the skin (whereas the Smart Cover remains like new even after a week of active use).

In addition, the cover makes the already quite voluminous gadget even more plump and weighty. Yes, and the tablet is removed from it with some difficulty. Therefore, between the more expensive Smart Case and the cheaper Smart Cover, we choose the latter, and not at all because of the price. However, these are subjective feelings. For users who are thinking about buying cases and covers, we advise you to go to the store and see them live in order to understand whether you want to walk with such a thing or not.

Screen

The declared parameters of the iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3 screens do not differ from those of their predecessors: in all cases we have an IPS-matrix with a resolution of 2048 × 1536, and the screen diagonal is 9.7″ and 7.9″, respectively. However, the fact that the key parameters are identical does not mean that the screens are exactly the same in all their properties. After all, even screens from different batches can vary slightly. In addition, it was interesting to compare the screens of the iPad mini 2 and iPad Air 2. As the testing performed by the editor of the “Monitors" and "Projectors and TV" sections Alexei Kudryavtsev showed, they differ not only in diagonal! Below is his conclusion.

The front surface of both screens is made in the form of a glass plate with a mirror-smooth surface, resistant to scratches. Judging by the brightness of reflected objects, the Air 2's anti-glare properties are noticeably better than those of the Google Nexus 7 (2013) (hereinafter simply Nexus 7). In the case of the mini 3, these properties are comparable to our benchmark. For clarity, here are photos in which a white surface is reflected in the off screens of the tablets (Nexus 7 is on the left, then it can be distinguished from the tested tablets by the screen size, since it is smaller. Similarly, Air 2 is easy to distinguish from mini 3 in size). iPad Air 2:

The screen of the Air 2 is much darker - the brightness in the photograph is 65 versus 106 for the Nexus 7. The tripling of the reflected objects in the screen of the Air 2 is very weak, this indicates that there is no air gap between the outer glass (it is also a touch sensor) and the surface of the matrix (screen type OGS - One Glass Solution). Due to the smaller number of borders with very different refractive indices (such as glass-air), such screens look better in conditions of strong external illumination, but their repair in case of cracked external glass is much more expensive, since the entire screen has to be changed.

On the contrary, the screen of the iPad mini 3 is slightly lighter - the brightness is 117 in the photo. The reflection in the screen triples, which suggests the presence of an air gap between the surface of the matrix and the outer glass. From the point of view of image perception, this is a minus, but a screen with a separate outer glass (aka a touch panel) is easier and cheaper to repair.

In the case of both tested tablets, there is clearly a special anti-glare coating on the outer surface of the screens (a slightly purple reflection tone indirectly indicates this), and the surface of the LCD matrix itself is slightly matte - the reflection is slightly hazy.

On the outer surface of the screens there is a special oleophobic (grease-repellent) coating, so fingerprints are removed more easily and appear at a slower rate than in the case of ordinary glass. At the same time, the effectiveness of this coverage is noticeably higher for the iPad mini 3, but in both cases it is significantly lower than for the Nexus 7.

For iPad Air 2, with manual brightness control, its maximum value was about 410 cd / m², and the minimum - 4.5 cd / m². For iPad mini 3, the values ​​are: 445 and 8 cd/m². The maximum values ​​are quite high, and, given the good anti-reflective properties, at bright daylight the image on both screens must be clearly visible. In complete darkness, the brightness can be lowered to a comfortable level. The automatic brightness control works according to the light sensor (sensors). The iPad Air has 2 sensors, two, they are located under the front panel in the upper right and left. They work on the priority of maximum brightness, so an accidentally covered corner will not suddenly lower the brightness of the screen during the day on the street. AT automatic mode when external lighting conditions change, the brightness of the screen both increases and (well, wow!) Decreases. If you do not touch the brightness slider, then in complete darkness the auto-brightness function reduces the brightness to 4.5 cd / m² (very dim, but at night during a sleep break it is normal to peep), in an office lit by artificial light (about 400 lux) it sets to 100 -120 cd/m² (suitable), in a very bright environment (corresponding to a clear day outdoors, but without direct sunlight - 20,000 lx or a little more) increases to the maximum, i.e. 410 cd/m² (as it should be) . In general, this function works adequately. There are legends that by setting the brightness slider with your hands to the desired level with automatic brightness control turned on, Apple tablets and smartphones (as well as monoblocks and monitors) can be taught to set the desired brightness level, but we were unable to comprehend the logic of training, since after our intervention we received strange and poorly reproducible results. Automatic brightness control on the iPad mini 3 is not fundamentally different from this feature on its predecessor. In this mode, the brightness can only increase - when the ambient light level decreases, we did not wait for the corresponding decrease in screen brightness. However, if you put the tablet into sleep mode and turn it on again, the brightness will be set in accordance with the external conditions. In complete darkness - 8 cd / m² (dim), in the office - 90-130 cd / m² (suitable), in bright light - 445 cd / m² (logical). Both Air 2 and mini 3 have practically no backlight modulation at any brightness level, so there is no screen flicker.

The tablets use an IPS type matrix. Micrographs show a typical IPS sub-pixel structure. iPad Air 2:

For comparison, you can see the gallery of microphotographs of screens used in mobile technology.

The screens have excellent viewing angles without color inversion and without significant color shift even at large deviations of the gaze from the perpendicular to the screen. For comparison, here are photos in which the same images are displayed on the Nexus 7 and the tested tablets, while the screen brightness is set to about 200 cd / m², and the color balance on the camera is forcibly switched to 6500 K. Perpendicular to the screens is a test picture, iPad Air 2:

Color reproduction is good on all screens, the color balance differs slightly, but if you look closely, in the case of mini 3 you can see a slight decrease in the saturation of bright colors close to the primary ones. And a white box, iPad Air 2:

Note the good uniformity of brightness and color tone. Now at an angle of approximately 45 degrees to the plane and to the side of the screen, iPad Air 2:

It can be seen that the colors and brightness balance have not changed much for both tablets. Then a white box, iPad Air 2:

The brightness at the angle of the tablets has noticeably decreased (at least 5 times, based on the difference in shutter speed), but in the case of both iPads, the screen brightness at this angle is still slightly higher. The black field, when deviated diagonally, is lightened weakly, and acquires a purple or red-violet hue. A photo from the Nexus 7 for comparison shows this (the brightness of the white areas in the perpendicular direction is approximately the same for both tablets!), iPad Air 2:

And from another angle:

And from another angle:

When viewed perpendicularly, the black uniformity of the iPad Air 2 is not ideal, as there are areas with slightly increased black brightness along the edge:

In contrast, the iPad mini 3 does well with black uniformity:

But the contrast ratio is lower - 600:1 versus a very good 930:1 for the iPad Air 2. The latter has a black-white-black transition time of 23ms (13ms on + 10ms off). The transition between 25% and 75% grayscale (according to the numerical value of the color) and back takes a total of 36 ms. For mini 3, the values ​​are: 22ms (13ms on + 9ms off) and 33ms, respectively. The gamma curve constructed from 32 points with an equal interval according to the numerical value of the shade of gray did not reveal a blockage either in the highlights or in the shadows. The exponent of the approximating power function is 2.21 and 2.25 (iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3), which is close to the standard value of 2.2, while the real gamma curve almost coincides with the power law:

This technique allows you to increase the brightness of the screen with the same energy consumption for backlighting. As a result, the colors of images - drawings, photos and movies - oriented to the sRGB space (and the vast majority of them) on the iPad mini 3 screen have slightly reduced saturation.

The balance of shades on the gray scale is good, since the color temperature is slightly higher than the standard 6500 K and the deviation from the blackbody spectrum (ΔE) is less than 10, which is considered acceptable for a consumer device. At the same time, the variation in color temperature and ΔE is small, which has a positive effect on the visual perception of color balance. (The dark areas of the gray scale can be ignored, since the color balance does not matter much there, and the measurement error of color characteristics at low brightness is large.)

Let's summarize. iPad screen Air 2 has a sufficiently high maximum brightness and excellent anti-glare properties, so the device can be used outdoors without any problems even on a sunny summer day. The screen of the iPad mini 3 is a little worse in this regard - the anti-glare properties are not so outstanding - but its screen will not “blind” in the sun either. In complete darkness, the brightness of both screens can be lowered to a comfortable value. It is also acceptable to use the mode with automatic brightness adjustment, which works more or less adequately (plus some possibility of manual correction of this function, and the iPad Air 2 can now even lower the brightness itself!). The advantages of the iPad Air 2 include: the absence of an air gap in the layers of the screen, high contrast and sRGB color gamut, both screens are also flicker-free, have high black stability to deviation of the gaze from perpendicular to the screen surface and are characterized by good color balance. Significant drawbacks in the case of the older model include a weak oleophobic coating, and in the case of the iPad mini 3 - a narrowed color gamut. Nevertheless, given the importance of properties for this class of devices, the screen quality of both the iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3 should be recognized as high. We can't help but reiterate the iPad Air 2's outstanding anti-glare properties, resulting from the combination of OGS technology and a special anti-glare coating. None of the screens of the mobile device that we have tested have this.

To the above, we can add that the grease-repellent coating of the iPad Air 2 really leaves much to be desired - the screen "slams" quickly enough. But otherwise the display is excellent. Feels like one of the best we've seen. Which, in general, is confirmed by detailed tests.

OS and software

Both new iPads come with the latest operating system iOS systems- 8.1. The main changes that have appeared in it are related to the deepening and expansion of the relationship within the Apple ecosystem: between iOS devices, as well as iOS devices and computers running OS X 10.10 Yosemite. Here Apple introduces two new concepts: Handoff (transfer) and Continuity (continuity). Without going into terminological and marketing nuances, here are just a few examples that are very revealing in terms of user experience.

By clicking on it, you will see the same page that was opened on the iPad. Mail works the same way. If you started typing in Mail and then switched to a Mac, you can pick up where you left off. Of course, all this only works in Apple applications, so if you prefer an alternative email client or browser, then Handoff will not work.

Another example is the ability to receive calls coming to the iPhone from a tablet, even without a SIM card in it. Let's say you're sitting in a chair with an iPad, and there's an iPhone on a table in the other corner of the room. If someone calls you, you used to have to go to your smartphone. Now you can take a call right on your iPad.

A very convenient feature, although it has one drawback: when you receive a call, all your Apple devices start ringing at once :) Same with SMS: now regular text messages you can receive and respond to them using not only the iPhone, but also the iPad and Mac (we are talking about SMS, because iMessages have long been accepted on all these devices).

We'll cover more about Continuity and Handoff in our review of the 27-inch iMac with Retina 5K display - detailed testing of this computer will appear on the site soon. Here we note that now the connection between the iPad, iPhone and Mac is stronger than ever. And for those who are inside this ecosystem (which implies the use of not only hardware, but also software products of a single company), such opportunities are available that, perhaps, users of competitors' products do not have. More precisely, a little different: these features are available out of the box and work by default.

And lastly, as before, new iPads sold already pre-installed office suite(Pages, Numbers and Keynote), which gives it a big advantage over Android and Windows tablets, where we can't always find a decent free office solution. On the other hand, again, for the most effective work with Pages, Numbers and Keynote, you will also need versions for Mac (fortunately, they are now free, but far from all iPad owners have Macs themselves).

In the second part of this article, we'll cover iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3 performance, gaming, battery life, 4G performance, and cameras.